Units for picking up spare wheels designed for use in vehicles, and more specifically units designed for picking up or releasing a spare wheel that are arranged below the chassis (or on the underbody) of the vehicle are known in the state of the art.
These units generally comprise a mechanism with a transmission shaft which allows winding or unwinding a cable when the user manipulates the transmission shaft with a tool. The transmission shaft comprises a gear assembly which allows transmitting a torque which the user produces with the tool and a drum which allows winding or unwinding the cable when the torque is transmitted from the gear assembly.
Drums winding the cable onto the body of the drum by overlapping the different turns of the cable, defining a drum with a larger diameter, and drums winding the different turns of the cable over the entire surface of the body of the drum in a helical groove, defining a drum with a smaller diameter but greater depth, are known. The drums of both types comprise a terminal to which one end of the cable is attached, the terminal being attached to the drum.
European Publication No. EP0697326 A2 describes a unit for picking up spare wheels comprising a drum which rotates for winding or unwinding a cable, one end of the cable being attached to a pivoting terminal, and the terminal being attached to the body of the drum.